Earlier this year, we asked you to share the skills you're most focused on building in 2022.
Many of you said that you'd like to do more around audience analysis for communications planning. You want to gain a better understanding of your audiences' values, motivations and their pain points – ultimately setting the stage for an effective campaign.
So, we put together an easy three question checklist to get you started on smart audience analysis.
Read MoreTwitter has made its intentions clear: to keep your feeds free and clear of this kind of “disruptive,” duplicative posting.
We waited a beat to see how this rule was playing out in our feeds, the algorithm and in our partners’ social strategies. Here's what *we know* this means so far for all of us and our Twitter experiences.
Read MoreI’ve scrolled past endless LinkedIn posts, tweets and Facebook comments these past few weeks -- all with the same sentiment. What we’re living through now isn’t acceptable, and we want it to be different.
Here’s the communication problem with the “something must change” posts: they unintentionally perpetuate the idea that the problems we face are too big.
Read MoreWe’ve all heard the phrase a picture is worth a thousand words. And that’s true – but in marketing and advocacy, the images aren’t just about the pictures themselves and the words they represent. They are also about the feelings they evoke and the narratives they help shape.
Read MoreWe know your work – all of our work – is directly impacted by recent tragedies and crises. Dallas, Buffalo, Laguna Woods, Uvalde. The formula crisis, attacks on necessary equity efforts in our schools and child care shortages. These all signal the need for a major revolution.
So what do we want? Long-term, sustainable policy change to help our children and families thrive. When do we want it? NOW. (I mean, years ago, really.)
So that’s what we’re focused on today. We reviewed more than 10 peer-reviewed journal articles, book excerpts and research studies (in addition to years of experience working with policymakers!) to ensure that you have what you need to succeed in your advocacy.
Read MoreWhen talking about big issues that aren’t disappearing anytime soon, relying on sentimental language, grim details, or an instinctually emotional reaction from audiences can actually do more harm than good. Here are three things to think about when communicating about tough topics.
Read MoreWhen it comes to storytelling, you’re already sold. You know stories about your work help demonstrate your organization’s impact in a personal, relatable way.
Now, it’s on to actually telling the stories. That starts with interviews. And this – this is the step when even seasoned communications professionals can get a little nervous. From how to ensure you’re getting consent to asking questions in a respectful way, it can be a little tricky!
Here’s Forthright’s true-blue formula for asking for initial consent and asking questions.
Read MoreYou’re not the only one feeling this weary. Our brains are stuffed. Our overwhelm is preventing us from thinking clearly and from making decisions in the way that we used to.
And yet…we’ve got real work to do. Fighting for change for children and families is necessary today. The time is now. Our work, our life’s work, it’s more important than ever before.
As consultants who work with busy brains every day, we have a few tricks up our sleeve that we use to focus and move our work forward. Here are a few of our current favorites.
Read MoreWhen Jon Jon served as Forthright’s social media strategist, his wise counsel about how and when to use our voice on national issues was a guiding beacon for us. Today, Jon Jon joins us for special projects like this one – helping you decide if, when and how to chime in on Big Conversations.
Read MoreForthright Senior Advisor Ashley Peterson-DeLuca dug into the research about how our inbox-reading behavior changed during and after the pandemic. Check out her email marketing tips to make sure you’re following up-to-date practices.
Read MoreThe way we process information in a crisis – like, you know, an ongoing pandemic and wartime – is different. Right now, our attention spans are shorter, and we’re more forgetful, too.
This means that to best serve our audiences, we need to focus on delivering information as clearly as possible.
The key to this clarity? Breaking it up!
Read MoreForthright founder Katie recently sat down with Elana Leoni, founder of Leoni Consulting Group, to chat about this exact topic: the power of storytelling.
We’re sharing a few key takeaways from the conversation here. (Or, listen to their podcast convo here!)
Read MoreYou have 20 tabs open.
You’ve got your phone in one hand, scrolling through your feeds, while you’re checking your emails on your laptop.
You’re wondering what hashtag you should use.
Put down your phone. Close those tabs. Resist the trending hashtag.
We’re always being told more is better. More social media outlets, more messaging, more fries, more EVERYTHING. But here’s the thing: that’s a lie (with the exception of the fries part.)
Read MoreDifferent year, same annual report. Do you find yourself having similar thoughts as you launch your 2022 annual report process? If you do, you’re not alone–we’ve heard this sentiment from communicators across the country.
Read MoreWe, as the smart, amazing people who work on behalf of families and children, are no longer going to spend our precious time on projects that don’t have a proven return on that time investment.
Instead, we’re going to ruthlessly prioritize, and that begins by deciding what we’re going to say no to.
To make saying no as easy as possible, the Forthright team created a new quiz tool to help nonprofit professionals like you figure out what to take off their list.
Read MoreI get it. Whenever I think about Giving Tuesday and the end of year giving season for our clients, I am hit with a mix of anticipation and excitement, topped with a thin layer of dread. As anyone who has ever worked at a nonprofit knows, while everyone else in the world is settling down with mistletoe and turkey, you’re sprinting full speed into one of the busiest times of year. Never fear— we’ve got your back.
Here are a few tips to make your end of year campaign the best one yet.
Read MoreAs we push until the very last moment, now is the time to reuse, repurpose and refresh the things you already know are working—to get even more out of the existing strongest messages, messengers and tactics that can take us across the finish line. Here are four things that you can do in less than 15 minutes to sustain—or build—momentum at the end of an advocacy campaign.
Read MoreIn many communications initiatives, you just KNOW your target audience is going to find fault with your campaign. They are going to have questions, concerns or downright oppose your work.
Once you explain your vision, they’ll say “what I’m worried about is...” and launch into why they don’t support you. What comes after the “what I’m worried about...” is the concern—in other words, the challenge you need to overcome to gain your opposition’s support.
Read MoreThis week, in the second part of our two-part series, we’re diving into hiring. Good hiring takes time, patience and clarity—so the sooner you start the process after receiving a resignation, the better.
Read MoreAmericans are quitting their jobs at a record rate. Korn Ferry calls it an “unprecedented string of walkouts”. News headlines nicknamed it “the great resignation.” However you describe it, the employee turnover in every industry, including ours, is so real right now.
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